


Diyamin is Unbreakable

by SG3SoulInk



Category: Butterfly Soup (Visual Novel), ジョジョの奇妙な冒険 | JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken | JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Genre: F/F, Fluff, angst later, how does one describe a stand, min’s stand is dangerous, noelle has a glass jaw, this is a mistake, what are the odds
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-02-28 06:20:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22609168
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SG3SoulInk/pseuds/SG3SoulInk
Summary: After a strange occurrence, it seems that Noelle has developed what is known as a Stand. But she isn’t the only one. What will happen, now that these newfound powers have become part of D.A.M.N’s lives, and will Min be able to control her abilities?
Relationships: Akarsha/Noelle (Butterfly Soup), Diya/Min-seo (Butterfly Soup)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	1. Prologue: Dragula’s Awakening

**Author's Note:**

> This is a mistake. If you’re unfamiliar with my writing style, it’s basically a screenplay.

*10th Grade...*  
*Akarsha smiles up at Noelle. Not a shit-eating bastard grin or a smirk, but a genuine smile of true happiness on Akarsha’s beautiful face. Noelle’s smiling for real too, instead of the confident grin that screams “I’m right, have always been right, and always will be right you simple bitch.” Min clasps Diya’s hand as the pair leans against the snack table, watching from afar*

Diya: Sorry.

*Min looks over at Diya, who is wearing a knee-length, blue, backless dress and looking incredibly flustered*

Min (smiling): For what?

Diya: For making you skip out on our first slow dance in six years...

Min: (It should be illegal to be this cute.) Don’t worry about it, there will be many to come. There’s no harm in taking a breather in a building full of white people wearing too much cologne!

*Diya smiles a little, and Min’s heart soars*

Diya: I, um... your bow tie is really nice.

Min (looking down at their three piece black suit with a red bow tie): Thanks, Akarsha helped me pick it out. (She doesn’t need to know that it’s a clip-on.)

???: Can you fucking move so I can get some punch?

Min (turning to glare at the snotty junior guy in a green suit with metal hair): If I didn’t care about being kicked out I’d beat your ass. (MAY MY CALM INTENSITY DESTROY YOUR SOUL.)

Guy (eyes widening): You’re a woman?!

Min (taking a step towards the guy): I’m your worst fucking nightmare—

Diya (tugging on Min’s arm): Let’s just go...

*Min scoffs and follows Diya away from the intruder. Still, she marks him as a target for later. Then she hears a crash and some gasps followed by a stream of curses. They both wheel around to see the guy lying on top of the broken table, and even with the low lighting Min can see his shirt is stained with blood from his nose*

Min: If I knew you were going to fall on your ass, I would have knocked you down myself.

Guy: I didn’t trip, you fucking hit me!  
Min (raiding an eyebrow): Um, no I didn’t.

Guy: Then what just punched me in the face?!

Min: (I can’t believe this guy) *she looks to Diya* You know I didn’t hit him, right?

*Diya nods, and Min turns back to start having a shouting match with this limp-dicked sonuvabitch. Meanwhile, Diya looks around and suddenly feels pressured by all the lights and sounds and—*

Diya: (I wish I could just have a moment to myself...) *Diya uses her free hand to hug herself* (A moment alone to figure out what to do, like a safer version of being in Freefall...)

*it’s silent. And dark. Diya can feel Min-seo’s hand there, but can’t see her. But it’s like a void. It’s kinda nice. For a second it’s like the world never existed... until it comes back. It’s slow, like fading in from black in a tv show after a commercial break. The crowd, Min, all of it. It’s an easy dip back into the madness and Diya feels a little calmer. She’s suddenly aware of people yelling, a few clapping (Min must’ve dealt a good line) and of Noelle breaking through the crowd, tailed by Akarsha*

Noelle: We need to leave. Now.

Akarsha: Why? This is more entertaining than watching 80’s Sci-Fi with someone who constantly has a stick up their ass.

Min (pointing a finger at Noelle): I am at WAR and I will WIN!

Noelle (turning to Akarsha): I think we need to show them what we’ve been working on.

Akarsha (confused): What are you—OHHHH that!

*Min continues to protest*

Noelle (to Diya, looking too tired to deal with this): Just grab her, this is important.

*Diya nods, grabs Min, lifts, and slings her over her shoulder. Min fall silent as Diya escorts her out, to Noelle’s car where she is set down on the ground and almost has her knees give out. Luckily, she was able to get in and buckle her seatbelt without too much trouble*

Noelle (putting her keys in the ignition): Don’t ask questions until we have our resources. This is... something else entirely.


	2. Ch1: Noelle’s Alla Turca

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Noelle wants to understand what’s happening to her. Luckily for her, Akarsha reads manga.

Two months before Diyamin’s Awakening:

*Noelle gave a yell of surprise and heard the clatter of ten wooden sticks that bring life and destruction spilling out across the floor. Then she felt an entire room of eyes on her. She looked up and, lo and behold, her fears were confirmed. The teacher and the entire class was looking at her in concern*  
Teacher: Are you alright, Noelle?  
Noelle (nodding): Yes, ma’am, I’m fine, I just... knocked over my pencils and it startled me.  
*everyone’s eyes go back down and Noelle leaves her chair to bend down and reorganize all her pencils after their tumble*  
Noelle: (The pencils fell after I yelled. Hopefully nobody was smart enough to catch that. And I didn’t lie to the teacher because that was startling and not a hallucination like whatever actually did—did not—happen. There.)  
*with the last pen slid into exactly where it was supposed to be, Noelle took her seat and went to touch her calculator, placing two fingers on the plus and minus buttons. Nothing happens. Noelle takes a deep breath and gets to work on the problem she was focused on before the incident*

48 hours and 37 minutes later...  
*Noelle paces the corridors of books in the school library, trying to find anything to help her know what happened in math. She hears an alarm go off and figures that either someone is trying to steal a book or Akarsha got sent to find her*  
Akarsha: Don’t make me use the secret call, Noelle.  
*Noelle ignores her, continuing to peruse the shelves for a book about her dilemma. Soon, she hears a song float through the deserted library*  
MP3 player: “When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore...”  
*despite all her training, Noelle groans in irritation*  
Akarsha: Found you!  
*in an instant, Akarsha stands at the end of Noelle’s row of shelves. Noelle ignores her still, not letting this wonderful woman distract her*  
Akarsha: Why are you here chasing forbidden knowledge instead of letting us eat your grapes, Frenchman?  
Noelle (without looking away from her task): To figure something out.  
Akarsha (approaching Noelle as she pockets her MP3 player): What are you trying to figure out? Can I help?  
*Noelle hesitates before turning to her friend*  
Noelle: I think I’m going crazy. I’m having hallucinations of my calculator but they aren’t hallucinations—*she brings a shaking hand to her forehead*—but that’s the only thing they can BE so I didn’t want to bring it up in case—  
Akarsha (raiding her hands to stop Noelle): Whoah, ok, slow down. Hallucinations about your calculator?  
Noelle: Yes, but I can control it, which makes no sense.  
Akarsha (raiding an eyebrow): Huh?  
Noelle (reaching into her pocket): Let me just—tell me if you can see it too, ok?  
*Akarsha nods as Noelle pulls out her pocket calculator*  
Noelle (muttering): Alla Turca  
*the calculator is suddenly surrounded by blinding sparkles that fade to reveal a device the dimensions of a HP48 or similar graphing calculator... that Noelle turns on its side and opens. Akarsha marvels at this gadget that looks like a larger yet sleeker version of a Nintendo DS (it’s the size of a 3DSxl but this is in 2009 so it didn’t exist yet). It has all the buttons of a really fancy calculator but with a full alphabet keyboard as well, and a screen double the size of any calculator Akarsha or Noelle had seen*  
Akarsha (jaw dropping in awe): Dude, that’s sick! You know magic!  
Noelle (looking at her expectantly): So, you see it too? I’m not crazy?  
Akarsha (grinning): Unless we’re both crazy...  
Noelle (furrowing her brow): Watch it with your reassurances, I consider that a very real possibility. 

*Noelle looks back to the device and presses the MODE key, then a button adjacent to the screen. This brings up a list of options, or at least it would be if it had more than two entries. Instead, the cursor hovers beside the lonely text on an otherwise blank screen reading “Alla Turca (Your Stand)”. Before Akarsha can read the second item on the list, Noelle hits the ENTER key, changing the screen to a sort of profile or bio. The right side of the screen shows what appears to be a front-facing mug shot of Noelle in her everyday wear, a rendition of the strange device itself, and a graphic in the bottom right corner indicating that one could rotate the images using the L and R shoulder buttons. The left side of the screen was a list of information that read as follows:*

Name: Alla Turca  
Master: Noelle  
Suggestion: “Rondo Alla Turca” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  
Abilities:  
-Calc-Stand Index(STI)  
-Transformation  
-Calc-Radar(RDR)  
-Calc-Divination(DIV)  
-Calc-Tracking(TRK) 

Akarsha (tapping her chin with a serious look on her face): Stand Name...  
Noelle (ignoring her): I’ve been messing with it for a couple days now—  
Akarsha: Stand User...  
Noelle: I spent the first night learning with its features and the next how to control when it comes out, but I—  
Akarsha (pointing dramatically, putting her finger right in Noelle’s face): I KNOW WHERE I’VE HEARD OF THIS!!  
Librarian: sHHHH!!!  
Akarsha (shrugging and grabbing Noelle’s hand and tugging on it): Follow me, I have something amazing to show you.

*several minutes later...*  
*Akarsha and Noelle sit next to each other as Akarsha shows Noelle the library’s copy of the first volume of Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure pt3: Stardust Crusaders. As they read on, Noelle finds the title very fitting indeed. She wasn’t aware media this strange existed. Still, she pays close attention for the sake of scientific investigation. Well, as scientific as you can get when psychic powers are involved*  
Noelle (holding up her folding gadget and staring curiously at it): A Stand... a manifestation of one’s fighting spirit. So, this thing... is called Alla Turca and it’s supposed to... describe who I am or something?  
Akarsha: Well, your personality can be a big factor on what makes your stand tick, but it’s not the only thing that affects it.  
Noelle (half to herself): What about me has to do with this weird machine...? And why is it just this instead of an anatomically impossible and nonsensically-clad woman?  
*Akarsha rests her chin in her hand, deep in thought. Noelle looks at expectantly until she speaks*  
Akarsha (smiling): This stand helps you understand other stands... just like you try to understand things in class. You’re learning to understand people too, which this stand might actually be a big help with!  
Noelle: But why is it just a crummy, fragile super-calculator. The other stands in the book can punch, or have tentacles or fire or can at least grab stuff, mine just does math and has an encyclopedia.  
Akarsha (her smile turning into a smirk): In Jojo’s, the weaker a stand is in combat, the more powerful their other abilities are. Yours is off the rails, let me see your entry again!  
*after a few keystrokes, Noelle hands Alla Turca to Akarsha, who moves the cursor through the “Abilities” section of Noelle’s entry, pressing enter to read the expanded explanations of each ability*  
Akarsha: I mean, look at this shit! You can track other Stands and users, detect when a new Stand or Stand user gets close, answer math problems and shit to fill in Stand entries?! *she hands Alla Turca back to Noelle* These are probably the most powerful divination abilities I’ve seen in ANY Stand! *resting her chin in her hand with a pondering expression on her face* Well, up to part 5, there’s no English translation of Stone Ocean yet...  
Noelle (again, half to herself): That’s what those prompts were...  
*Noelle’s eyes widen as Akarsha just stares in confusion. Suddenly, Noelle starts working away on Alla Turca, mentally factoring polynomials and finding the equation for a line in point-slope AND slope-intercept form among other forms of math in order to learn more about the amazing woman next to her. Akarsha just watches, letting Noelle work. No quips, just admiring her serious face and eyes hungry for knowledge...  
Noelle breathes in sharply when a tone accompanies the arrival of an exclamation point graphic over the button for the Stand Index Mode. She switches over to said mode and leans over so that Akarsha can better see the entry labeled “Roundabout (Akarsha)”*  
Akarsha (staring wide-eyed at the screen): No way... I have one too?  
Noelle (grinning smugly): Apparently. “Most powerful divination abilities of any stand,” right? I got an alert from it saying that there was an unknown user nearby, around 800 meters away which is around ten blocks which is how far away you live...  
Akarsha (leaning her face considerably closer to Noelle’s, grinning): So... let’s see what I can do, eh?  
*before Noelle can select Akarsha’s entry, the bell rings, calling them back to class for another three hours*  
Akarsha (cupping her hands around her mouth): BOOOOO!!  
Librarian: SHHHHHH!  
Akarsha (standing up and looking down at Noelle): Show me after school, ok? *Akarsha grins* I want to test this baby out as soon as I can.

*a month later, Noelle sits on her bed with proper posture like she was taught. She’s busy scribbling in a notebook labeled “Research Journal.” The entry reads:

“...Akarsha still can’t summon her stand, and despite all we know about Alla Turca and how to use it we can’t learn anything more about Roundabout. Summoning it would help Alla Turca understand it, but therein lies the trouble of it all. Akarsha suggested that I attack her to force Roundabout to come out to protect her, but beyond my stand having no combat abilities, I don’t want to hurt Akarsha, even if she would be saved by her Stand. We’re halting research for now, or until Akarsha can summon her stand at least.”

*Research was indeed halted, until Akarsha and Noelle were swaying together, glad to be openly in love, hidden in the mass of teenagers on the dance floor. Until Akarsha and Noelle heard Noelle’s pocket calculator beeping*  
Akarsha (grinning): I forgot that you carry that now.  
Noelle: Do you mind if I check, just to make sure it’s nothing serious?  
*Akarsha wanted to know more about Stands just as much as Noelle did and was excited about the prospect of meeting more. But Noelle has read of the evils of DIO and The World, Bites the Dust, and King Crimson like Akarsha had, and Akarsha saw worry in her dance partner’s eyes*  
Akarsha: Yeah, go ahead and check, you’re fine.  
*Noelle hurriedly pulls a small pocket calculator from her bra (a trick she learned from Akarsha), summons Alla Turca, and quickly flips open the Stand. The screen shows a map of the gymnasium with parts of the surrounding campus with Noelle’s location represented by an arrow. Two blinking dots are near the west wall of the gymnasium and bold text at the top of the screen reads “(2) UNKNOWN STAND USERS NEARBY.” Noelle stares for a bit, not sure how to react to this when Akarsha’s voice snaps her back to attention*  
Akarsha: Anything good? Anything bad? Would a rhyme at this time make you unimaginably mad?  
*Noelle wrinkles her nose at the impromptu poem, despite its cleverness*  
Noelle (taking Akarsha’s hand): Let’s get away from the crowd, we need to scan the room.  
*Noelle leads Akarsha to the north wall, away from the people and couples. The hear a crash and Min shouting, but they have more important things to deal with. Noelle uses the “2nd” button on Alla Turca to select “Unknown 1” and “Unknown 2” for use in the tracking mode from the menu of entries. After switching to TRK mode, Noelle aims Alla Turca around the room, waiting until the compass at the top of the tracking mode shows that the unknown users are straight ahead. A few seconds later, the exclamation point graphic appears, indicating an updated entry. Akarsha watches patiently as Noelle works her magic, waiting in anticipation as Noelle puts in the mode change commands to check the new entries*  
Akarsha (smirking): That was quick, we must know them! Wonder who it is, Maybe Chryssa or “Sakura”—Ha! She would lose her shit if she found out she...  
*Akarsha’s jaw falls open and her eyes widen in surprise. She looks over her shoulder to see that Noelle’s reaction is similar*  
Akarsha: Well... I guess that’s... poetic. I used that correctly, right?  
*Noelle nods as Akarsha stares at the entry names, newly relabeled as “??? (Min-seo)” and “??? (Diya).”

To Be Continued...

(https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=cPCLFtxpadE)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let’s be real, Akarsha was MADE for the Jojo fandom.  
> If you want this to see more of this shitshow, I do have some story elements that I just MIGHT be able to flush out into full chapters. Let me know if you want to see more, and let me know what you think of Noelle’s stand! See you around!


	3. Ch2: Something Bizarre

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Min-seo won’t Stand for any punchghost malarky Noelle tries to talk to her about... so Akarsha takes matters into her own hands. Bizarre chaos ensues, and incredible powers are awakened.

Min: I have a what?

Noelle (looking aggravated): A Stand, which is a—

Min: The flying FUCK is a Stand?

*Diya just sits quietly on the edge of her bed next to Min as Akarsha and Noelle stand before them. Diya did not expect the night to end in a talking-to in her room from Noelle about whatever ghost-punch shenanigans happened at the dance. Still, she could work with this*

Diya: (Wonder what a Stand is? Do I have one too? How does Noelle know what this is? It sounds too weird for her to ever think of. And why is Akarsha helping her give this serious presentation of all people?)

Min: So I’m a psychic? And Diya is too?!

Diya: (Admittedly, Min isn’t helping me understand the situation at all. Still, I don’t want to interrupt any of them.)

Akarsha (putting a pointer fingers to her temple): It lets you punch things with your mind!

Min: I can punch things just fine on my own!

Diya (quietly): You could just send us an article on it or something...

Noelle: No. Articles on this are on sites that look like they were built by a middle schooler. I’ll type up a Word document later tonight. 

Min (standing up): No goddamn word documents, just speak English god fucking dammit before we—

*Diya places a hand on Min’s shoulder to calm them down. A red... aura(?) seems to surround Min as a slight shimmer appears in the air between the group. It fades as soon as it appears, though, as Min stops mid-sentence and sits back down, grumbling. Noelle and Akarsha flinch as Min does so*

Diya: (Did they see something too?)

Noelle (turning to Akarsha): Are you ok? You took a direct hit, and it didn’t look full strength, but still enough to cause—

Akarsha (turning to Noelle): Holy crap, Frenchman, did you see that?!

Noelle (sighing and going back to their calculator): *sigh* Thank god, you’re fine.

Akarsha: Whose was that? Why did it punch me? Was it new? On an unrelated note, can Alla Turca play MP3’s?

Noelle (working on the calculator): Just give me a second to— *she looks up from her work to stare incredulously at Akarsha* ...What?!

Diya: (They saw something, but apparently something different than what we did.) *she turns to Min* Do you have any idea what—?

Min (standing back up) WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?!

*Noelle glares at Min, who sits down again. They are still scowling at Noelle as she continues to speak*

Noelle: I’ll work all I can out of Alla Turca tonight. For now, I think we should get everyone home to rest. Um... *Noelle pauses* Diya, can Min stay the night here? Their Stand may prove problematic if they go home to their parents. *Akarsha raises an eyebrow* If my theory is correct at least. I haven’t decoded everything yet.

Diya: Min was planning to stay over tonight anyway. (Her parents are out of town and my house is the only place in town that will take her. No way do Min-seo’s parents trust her and Jun to be home alone.)

Akarsha (giving Diyamin a Cheshire grin): Clever... very sneaky and clever of you two, coordinating such a plan—

Min (scowling through their slight blush): Shut the fuck off, it’s just because—

Akarsha (raiding her hands defensively): Chill, man, I’m just messing. ...But are you—?

*Noelle grabs Akarsha’s hand, sending her into a slightly stunned silence before she can continue* 

Noelle: Good night, everyone. I’ll call you to discuss a plan of action once I’ve formed one.

*Noelle and a trailing Akarsha head towards Diya’s door with purpose* 

Min (waving): Whatever. See ya later, Frenchman.

Akarsha (pointing backwards at Min): No, that’s MINE, you don’t get to use—

Noelle (slightly irritated): I need to get you home, Akarsha. 

Diya: Take care!

*Noelle and Akarsha’s noise travels beyond the room and ends with the sound of the front door closing, leaving Diya and Min alone in the silence of the house*

*27 minutes later...*  
*Akarsha has her laptop under the covers with her as she chats with Noelle via Gmail. Her hair is down, she’s in her NASA pajamas, and a serious expression is on her face for once*

Noelle—That was a complete disaster!

albret einstong—honestly that went exactly how I thought it would

Noelle—You could have helped me out more back there.

albret einstong—I’m the joke friend. One does not simply convince their friends that they are psychic, frenchy

Noelle—I guess your credibility isn’t exactly the best.  
Noelle—You sure you’re alright after you got hit by Min’s Stand?

albret einstong—yo I’m fine  
albret einstong—you sure my Stand is the one that took the hit?  
albret einstong—It could have been Diya’s, since she’s a goddamn goddess and she probably didn’t even flinch from the hit

Noelle—Alla Turca seems to pick up more information about a Stand the longer the stand is active around it or me. Your Roundabout, not Diya’s Stand, is the updated entry. Min’s Stand also received an update, which is what’s troubling me. Will you be offended if I decipher Min’s first?

albret einstong—Why are you worried? Jotaro freaked out and beat some people up with his mind before he learned about Starplat.  
albret einstong—Actually, meet me at the park near Diya’s place tomorrow morning. I have another idea. Tell me all about it then?

Noelle—About what?

albret einstong—About the hidden secrets of Min’s Stand and my Roundabout aka a friggin tank!

Noelle—What does your “idea” entail?

albret einstong—Do you still have your old gear from your tennis days?

Noelle—I could find it with some digging. What are we going to do with it?

albret einstong—We gonna Koichi this bitch

Noelle—I haven’t read that far yet

albret einstong—You’ve been reading ahead on your own?:D

Noelle—Goodnight Akarsha.

albret einstong—awwwe:’(

Noelle—I’ll tell you everything I find out tomorrow. Love you.

albret einstong—awww :3  
albret einstong—Love ya too, Frenchman <3 

>albret einstong is offline<

*Akarsha grins to themself. Even with the Diyamin incident no.2 occurring that night, she was happier than she had been in a while* 

Akarsha (smiling happily): I have my own Stand... I have a girlfriend... Life is... not terrible! I can vibe with this.

*the next morning, Diya’s house...*  
*The sun peeks through Diya’s blinds as she lies on her side, observing Min’s sleeping face next to her. Silently, she slides her legs off of the bed, sitting on the edge of the mattress. Diya stares down at the Adidas t-shirt she wore to bed, deep in thought. She turns to look behind her when she hears fabric shifting and sees Min sitting up in bed, rubbing her eyes*

Min (groggily): ...Mornin’.

Diya: Morning. Sorry, did I—

Min (pushing their hair away from their face): You kinda did wake me, but I get to see your face sooner so to hell with your apology. *Min’s eyes widen in horror* That sounded really mean—I’m sorry, you know I—

Diya (calmly): To hell with your apology.

*Diya smiles warmly to affirm her meaning, and Min smiles back. Min rolls onto all fours and crawls towards her girlfriend, wrapping her arms around Diya’s neck and allowing the gentle giant’s shoulders to support her weight*

Min (blushing): I love you...

*Min starts to lean in closer, and Diya closes her eyes as she accepts Min’s tender kiss. It’s still just as electrifying as the first they shared. They pull back after only a few moments, but their hearts are racing all the same.  
Sadly, the mood is interrupted by Diya’s phone buzzing with a text notification on her nightstand. Severely bummed, Min untangles herself from Diya so that she can find out who wanted to talk to them*

Diya (flipping open her phone): It’s Noelle.

Min (mumbling): I friggin’ knew it...

Diya (pretending not to hear): Apparently she and Akarsha want to meet at the park to talk about something important. They want me to bring you too.

Min (sounding irritated): Is it about last night again?

Diya (scrolling through the text): Doesn’t say. I’m gonna get dressed real quick.

*Diya reaches into a drawer in her dresser and pulls on her thumbless sleeves and leggings before turning to Min, who seemed to be deciding if their Sum 41 shirt and black shorts would cut it for an adventure in the outside world*

Min (giving in and swinging their legs onto the floor): ...Me too, I guess.

*soon, Diyamin is strolling to the park near Diya’s residence, semi-ready to hear Noelle out. Surprisingly, Min-seo bears a small grin*

Diya (glancing over at Min): What’s got you so happy?

Min: I love that our idea of “getting dressed” just involves different pants. 

*indeed, all Diya and Min did to change their clothing was swap shorts for comfortable sweats and black jeans respectively, and put on hoodies to hide their wrinkled t-shirts*

Diya: (Next, Akarsha would say that “it’s not laziness, it’s efficiency”.)

Min: What time is is anyway?

Diya (pulling her phone out of her hoodie’s pouch to check the time): 8:37 a.m.

Min: Thanks. I want my facts straight before I yell at Noelle for waking us up so early.

Diya: We were already awake though.

Min: She got me out of the house before 9 on a Saturday. That’s gotta be illegal somewhere.

Diya: You should ask her.

Min: ...We’ll see.

*Soon enough, the duo approaches the park. All they see are a couple joggers and dog walkers. Diya forces herself to stay on track, for the sake of Noelle and whatever speech she prepared*

Diya: (Hopefully Min listens too, last night’s talk was exhausting and pointless. And I hope we don’t see another dog, I can’t hold myself back much longer—)

Min: DIYA, LOOK OUT!!!

*Diya immediately looks to her left and sees a golf ball flying towards her face at top speed. With no time to dodge out of the way or attempt to brace herself, Diya accepts her fate as she sees Min’s hand dart out to catch the ball. What catches her even more off-guard than getting pelted with golf balls at the local park is that a second hand, with pale skin and red, spike-knuckled fingerless gloves, is the one to reach the ball and close its fingers around it. Diya watches the other hand quickly place the ball in Min’s grip before disappearing*

Min (turning to Diya, grinning): Dude, that was insane! Your catching instincts must be rubbing off on me, I thought that there was no way I could have grabbed that!

Diya (smiling back): We may never know.

*Diya sees a small blur of yellow fly from a nearby tree towards Min-seo’s head. Min doesn’t see, and it’s traveling too fast to stop. All Diya can do is yell—*  
Diya (reaching out her right hand futilely): Min, heads up—!

*Diya is now able to distinguish the pattern on the tennis ball headed towards Min. It’s no longer moving, or if it is it’s moving incredibly slowly*

Diya: (What...?)

*She can read the Wilson logo on the side, and she can also see more than a strange hand as Min turns around. Diya sees an entire being fade into existence behind Min and slap the ball out of the air with a red and white hand. The tennis ball embeds itself in the ground with a thud as Min looks around, confused. First towards where Diya’s hand was thrust out towards, then to the ball in the grass, then to Diya herself*

Min: What the fuck is going ON this morning? *Min’s face turns to concern* ...Is everything okay?

*the being remains behind Min as she turns towards Diya, seemingly floating off of the ground. They float a head or so above Diya, and remain out of Min’s sight. But now that Diya gets a good look at it, she sees that it appears to be humanoid, but of no discernible gender. Its limbs and features are thin and feminine, but the build of its trunk is in no way female. All in all, Diya would describe it as small but fit. It’s skin is a fair white, a single garment/pattern adorning it’s body. It’s a sort of cloak fused with a leather jacket of sorts. The garment has a hood that seems to originate from its hairline and surrounds its face, almost like a metalhead’s mane. It’s even in messy braids, furthering the “metal” look. The hood/mane/hair nonetheless seems to be as shiny and smooth as silk and as the braids come down to the shoulders, they disappear seamlessly into the smooth fabric of the collar of the sleeveless jacket torso. The collar is open from shoulder joint to shoulder joint and has several dips/rips near the middle that, when combined with the curved dome of the hood/mane, form the teeth of a skull. The torso of the garment has 4 clasps/buttons across the middle, like that of a biker jacket (even though clasps seem to originate out of nowhere). In fact, the garment as a whole, even the hood to an extent, seems smooth enough to be a part of the creature’s very body. But even with this phenomenon, the back of the red of the garment extends to form a sort of short cape. There also were some skintight, knee-length “shorts” that would form a red “V” on the being’s thighs if it stood normally. Where the jacket should have had sleeves, it had a line running down the backs of the thing’s arms to its wrist, where it had the red fingerless gloves decorating its hands. There was something on the knuckles, though—short, white spikes. Like brass knuckles almost, but with a bit more “pointiness”.  
But it’s face completed the look. It’s face had an “X” on its forehead, the bottom tails extending under its eyes and across its entire face, disappearing behind the hinge of the jaw. Diya could only assume it joined up with the “hair” at some point, because the top tails of the “X” sure did. Said top tails were shorter and joined seamlessly with the hair-hood on its head, furthering the mystery of what was a part of this Stand’s body and wasn’t. The mouth was in a scowl, and the eyes were a pupil-less ice blue. The same red aura from last night surrounds Min and the new person, but Min doesn’t seem to notice*

Diya (staring at the creature floating behind Min): I— (Can she... not see it or...? How do I tell someone a floating person just punched a tennis ball out of the air? And what was that back there? Did my senses heighten to new levels because someone I loved was in danger? Is that even real?! Is that just on tv?! How much tv knowledge can I apply here?!)

*luckily, another tennis ball stops Diya’s internal rant by flying past Min’s head. This time she saw it. She turns to see where it came from*

Min (peering into the leaves of the tree the ball shot from): Someone’s up there... HEY, FUCKER! GET DOWN HERE YOU GODDAMNED LEAF COWARD!!

*Min continues to yell swears and insults as they dash towards the tree, the being levitating along behind them. Min leaps up towards the branches of the tree and grabs one of the stronger branches with their right hand. However, the mystery man(?) grabs the branch as well, in the same spot Min does. The branch snaps in its grip, and both Min and the stranger fall to Earth*

Diya (rushing to help the fallen humans): (Min’s hand must be crushed!)

*It took Diya a second to recognize that Akarsha was the stranger that fell flailing from the snapped branch and landed on their back. After all, Akarsha was in a navy blue hoodie instead of their usual, more colorful one. Still, those green alien sunglasses could only belong to one girl*

Min: What the—[What?!]

*Min was turning around in circles, looking mad and confused as all hell. The being remains behind them, just out of their view*

Diya (slightly hyperventilating): (From what I could tell, Min’s Person floated under her to break her fall. Min must’ve seen it that time. And now I guess she’s trying to figure out where it could be—)

Min (angrily): SHOW YOUR FACE TO ME YOU—WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU?!

*The mystery man(?) has finally stopped attempting to remain behind Min. Min takes a step back as her “thing” stares back at her with a serene yet serious face and blank eyes*

Diya: (Min looks about as confused as I feel. But this is way out of my league so I’ll just wait for Noelle to show and break up what I need to.)

Akarsha (staggering to her feet, yelling as well as she can with the wind knocked out of her): Next you’ll say, “AKARSHA, wHAT THE FUCK?!”

*Min, startled, wheels around and sends a right hook at Akarsha’s jaw. So does Min’s ghost. Another figure appears in front of Akarsha to block the ghost’s hand, and Min’s fist seems to have been deflected as well. Akarsha’s ghost looks to be colored blue with a large purple splotches on the left side of its face and shoulders. The splotches are what Min’s ghost hits, but before Diya can get a better look, the ghost disappears after Min’s ghost is blocked. Akarsha looks ecstatic*

Min: AKARSHA, WHAT THE FUCK?!

Akarsha (grinning happily): Zip-a-dee-doo-da, zip-a-dee-gay, Min! This is now my second favorite day.

Min (distressed): Akarsha, do you have any idea what in the fresh hell is happening to me—?!

Akarsha (grinning wider): I told you, you can punch things with your MIND!!

Min (gesturing wildly): WHAT THE HELL DOES THAT MEAN-?!?!

Noelle: We told you, it’s called a “Stand.”

*Diya turns to see Noelle calmly walking towards the group, wearing a loose navy skirt, a long black jacket, and aviators*

Noelle: This is what I was trying to tell you that you had last night. You didn’t listen, so we went with Akarsha’s way of doing things. 

Min (angrily pointing at Akarsha): This was all you?! Motherfu—*Min turns back to Noelle* you didn’t tell me it was a magic person!! All you said was I could punch things with my mind!

Akarsha (shrugging): In our defense, it’s our first time telling someone about this kind of thing.

Diya: Tell us over breakfast?

*Everyone turns to Diya. It’s the first time she’s spoken in a while, and despite her quiet manner, it permeates the din like a rapier*

Diya: We’ll all be able to think clearer, you’ll explain more clearly, and also I haven’t eaten yet and I’m starving. I have food at home.

*Everyone looks at each other and nods in agreement*

Akarsha (pointing towards the direction of Diya’s house): Onwards, towards sustenance!

*Soon, back at Diya’s house...*  
Diya: I could have helped cook if you wanted—

Noelle (setting four plates of omelette, hash browns, and bacon before the other three girls): It’s ok. If my parents made me take a cooking class, I should use what I learned to the fullest.

*D.A.M.N sit around Diya’s kitchen table, chatting away over the breakfast Noelle prepared for them*

Akarsha: They want you to be able to cook for your husbando after your 12-hour work shift of reinventing the essence of whatever? Damn.

Noelle (stabbing her eggs unsmilingly): I have no intention of getting a husband. You hooligans are making me a rebellious punk.

Min (eating a bite off the end of her knife): Pft! It ain’t rebellion until you have to hide a body.

Diya: (I won’t ask her to elaborate because I’m honestly scared about her answer.)

Noelle: Baby steps are the key to learning anything, Min-seo. My rebellions will be starting small, like anything. But if they stay small, like you, then so be it.

*Min tenses up and looks butterfly knives at Noelle, but doesn’t say anything

Diya: (Min-seo hopes to one day fight God, but I just saw Noelle crack 8 eggs into a bowl with only one hand, and the bowl was shell-free. Either one of them could come out on top. Still, if they even thought of fighting I’d throw them to opposite ends of the yard and look sternly at them until they apologized.) 

Akarsha: Baby steps, huh? Like not using these skills to feed your future husband in favor of feeding your future wife?

*Noelle glares at Akarsha for a bit before returning to her cooking*

Noelle: I would put beef jerky into your next omelette as punishment for that joke, but you’d probably think it enhances the dish tenfold.

Akarsha (eyes lighting up): That no shit sounds delicious!

Min (grinning): Oh yeah, we’re so trying that!

Noelle (grumbling as they bring out their pocket calculator from their pocket): *sigh* Let’s talk business. 

*Min grumbles and puts away their knife. Akarsha prepares to back Noelle up for real this time. Diya turns towards her attention towards Noelle, ready to finally hear an explanation for what happened last night and this morning. 

Noelle: Alla Turca!

*the calculator quickly transforms into a powerful divination gadget before their eyes. Min and Diya’s eyes widen in surprise and amazement at this marvel, and surprisingly Akarsha seems unfazed*

Noelle (clicking a few buttons on Alla Turca): It seems we have all developed Stands. If you do not know, a Stand is, it is, put simply, *she reads from Alla Turca* “a physical manifestation of your fighting spirit and mental strength shaped by your personality. A person who has a Stand is called a Stand User or Master. Only other Stand Users can see Stands—” 

Akarsha: Except for when they don’t—

Noelle (ignoring Akarsha): “—only Stands can defeat other Stands—”

Akarsha (smirking slightly): Except for when they don’t—

Noelle (chancing a quick glare at Akarsha): “—and all damage done to a Stand will be reflected on the user—”

Akarsha: Except for when it—

Noelle (dropping Alla Turca down onto the table, irritated): Do you want to continue the explanation? 

*Noelle begins typing away on Alla Turca*

Akarsha (shrugging): Um, sure. So, Noelle’s funky Spirit Calculator can detect other Stands and can get info on them as long as they are in range. It’s can build a whole Pokédex of Stands, but so far it just has ours. If your Stands are around it enough, we’ll know everything about it down to the cool down time for your special moves and the top 10 greatest hits from whatever music reference they’re named after. 

Diya (straightening in her seat, curiosity piqued): They have names?! And we don’t get to choose them?

Noelle: No offense, but I’m pretty sure these names would lose any sort of poetic meaning they carry if it were up to any of you to name your Stand. That said, I feel like we should go on a quick tangent to tell you what your Stands are named, now that we know them all. *she clicks a few buttons on Alla Turca before continuing* Diya, your Stand is named “Freefall,” apparently after a song by a band called “Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers.” Min-seo’s is named “Dragula,” a song by—

Min: Dracula? 

Akarsha (moving to look over Noelle’s shoulder at Alla Turca’s screen with a smirk): No friggin way!

Min: Why the fuck is my stand named after a vampire? Am I going to have to fulfill some sort of blood requirement every week or—?

Akarsha: Nah, man, haha. It’s name is “Dragula” with a “g”. Like the song by Rob Zombie, ruler of all things edgy and metal before My Chemical Romance was a thing. *she looks excitedly at Noelle* Can you customize those entries? Can you add in, like, a footnote that Dragula is an emo stand for our emo gremlin—?

Noelle (cutting her off before she can say any more): Akarsha’s is “Roundabout,” named after a song by “Yes,” and mine is named “Alla Turca,” after “Piano Sonata 11 in A Major, K 331 ‘Turkish March’: III. Rondo alla Turca—Allegretto,” by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. 

Diya: (Let is take a moment to appreciate how easily Noelle regurgitates this information in contrast to how little she knows about any remotely popular band or artist from the last three decades.)  
*Akarsha sits back down, a slightly more serious look on her face now. Well, it’s not a smirk at least, although there is still a hint of a smile on her mouth* 

Akarsha: Our idea is to train with our stands so we can better control them and, like, not have them be causing weird poltergeist shit whenever they feel like it. Especially if one of our Stands, *she gives a fake cough*—Dragula—*another fake cough* turns out to be wicked dangerous. 

Min (through a mouthful of egg): What happens if I say “to hell with that”? I don’t need your bs training to help me do what the school counselor is telling me to do anyways, which is not punch people.

*Noelle glances at Akarsha, who nods, before going back to working on Alla Turca*

Noelle (not looking up from Alla Turca): Then your Stand will continue to operate without supervision, punching people whether you want to or not. You will end up potentially hurting friends, family... *she looks sternly at Min* or Diya...

Min (standing up abruptly): No WAY would I—!

*a red and white fist thrusts forward towards Noelle’s face coupled with the yell of a Korean word Diya doesn’t recognize. Noelle flinches as the punch collides with a blue arm that has thrust itself in front of her face at the last second. From what Diya can see before Noelle’s savior fades from  
existence, the arm belongs to a being with a blue body and ribbed purple cones sticking out from either side of its head. However, it disappears as soon as Min’s Dragula completes it’s punch*

Diya: (It looks the same as the thing that blocked Min’s hit at the park. Guess that’s Roundabout.) 

*Dragula vanishes as well, leaving Min-seo embarrassed and avoiding eye contact with Noelle, Akarsha looking nervously between them all, and Noelle glaring coldly at Min. Diya glances around the table at the group in the uncomfortable silence that follows until Noelle speaks up again*

Noelle (speaking calmly): Your Stand specifically seems to have a mind of its own. This is not a matter of you deliberately hurting others. It’s a matter of an insubordinate Stand obeying its user, as well as all of us collectively understanding our abilities better so that we can use our Stands proficiently. 

*Min looks to Diya, silently asking her what she thinks about the proposal. Diya looks down at her food for a bit before looking Min in the eye and giving her answer*

Diya: At this point, I have no idea what this thing is that is apparently a part of me or what it does. If Noelle wants to help us learn how to turn this into something we can use, then I trust Noelle.

*Min looks back to Noelle, who stares back calmly. Slowly, Min holds out her hand to shake*

Min (furrowing her brow as Noelle shakes her hand): This training better not mess with Baseball.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aight, guess I’m writing the rest of this. Thankfully I have more of an idea for what I want to do with this and with every new Jojo episode I consume, I know more about how in the goddamn hell to write about Stands (I’m in the middle of pt4 rn). I just realized that D.A.M.N should have manifested their Stands a long time ago since I’m ditching the plot point where they all get cut by a Stand Arrow at some point because Min is a dumbass. Eh, whatever. Hopefully I described Dragula’s appearance okay, I kinda based their design on King Crimson/Diavolo and Rob Zombie himself if that helps.


	4. Ch 3: Down to Business

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stand training begins, Diya's Freefall appears

*Min-seo stops her bike and waits for Diya to dismount from her seat behind her before getting off of it herself. She leans the bike against the bench facing the playground and looks towards the play structure. Despite it being dusk, she can make out Noelle sitting at the bottom of the slide wearing the coat she greeted them in at the same park the other day. Min can far more easily make out Akarsha squatting at the top of the slide, back in her signature windbreaker. They both seem to be awaiting their new pupils, and it suddenly occurs to Min how strange it feels to think of Akarsha as her teacher. Noelle stands up and begins walking towards the new arrivals. Akarsha begins to travel down the slide, jumping off at the end*

Akarsha (curling her legs beneath her to make herself smaller): Mirror’s Edge—AGH!

*Sadly, despite her acrobatics and use of parkour moves she learned from video games, her feet collide with the back of Noelle’s head, knocking Noelle flat on her face while Akarsha lands hard on her right hand 

Noelle (staggering to her feet): I’ve learned not to question your requirement for grand entrances, I’m scared to ask what the edge of a mirror has to do with this, but answer me this: why did you not summon Roundabout to save us?

Akarsha (moving to a sitting position and winking up at Noelle with wood chips in her hair): Kinda hard to summon a Stand when I’m busy tripping over your lovely locks.

*Min could have sworn Noelle’s eyes softened for a few seconds before she looked up at Diya and Min without responding to Akarsha*

Noelle (to Min and Diya): You won’t be able to hone any aspect of your Stands if you can’t keep them active for extended periods of time. This means learning how to summon your Stands at will, not just by reflex. This I leave to Akarsha. 

*Noelle walks off of the playground and sits cross-legged against a nearby tree. After summoning Alla Turca and resting it in her lap, she simultaneously dreads and eagerly awaits the moment when Akarsha will teach her friends how to harness their Stands*

Noelle (eyes darting between the rest of D.A.M.N): (Thanks to Alla Turca, I know that Akarsha’s been practicing with Roundabout at home; so much so that I now have a decent-length list of hits by Yes which may or may not be their entire discography. Regardless, this will be my first time seeing Roundabout in person.)

Akarsha (grinning with her hands clasped behind her back): You guys are gonna thank me later.

Min (raising a suspicious eyebrow): Is this what Noelle feels like every morning? I feel like I’m being stalked by a shark wearing a tacky ass jacket and buns that look like—

*Akarsha quickly brings her right arm out from behind her back and fires an Airsoft pistol at Min’s hand, the BB bouncing off of their index knuckle. Akarsha fires another shot, this time hitting Min-seo’s navel dead-on. Min growls as she holds her hand in pain and doubles up from unnatural abdominal discomfort. Diya’s eyes widen in surprise, and she takes an angry step towards Akarsha. Luckily, or perhaps not, Min beats her to the punch*

Min (scowling up at Akarsha, her eyes flashing red for a split-second): THE FUCK WAS THAT?!

*Akarsha doesn’t have the time to determine if this flash of color in the eyes is a way Stands telegraph their attacks. She is barely able to summon Roundabout in time to form an X with its arms that blocks a short flurry of punches from an angry Dragula*

Dragula (yelling in accordance with each punch): **죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어죽어!!!**  
((AN: Dragula’s cry [죽어] romanized is “jug-eo” meaning “die.”))

*The blows came faster than any human could deliver them, and Roundabout doesn’t even blink or flinch as it takes the hits with its left arm and body. With its other arm, it aims its pointer finger at Diya and three small, purple beads fly from its fingertip. Two hit Diya on each knee, and the third hits her on the left side of her chest. Akarsha hopes that she hit the perfect “critical hit point” for causing enough distress to bring out a Stand*

Akarsha (smirking): (All according to keikaku... but, uh... huh.) 

*Akarsha seemed to simply... forget about Diya entirely, and decides to turn her focus towards Min instead, as if Diya no longer existed. Meanwhile, Diya’s right hand darts to gingerly hold her chest while her left massages her knees painfully. Nobody is aware of this.

Noelle isn’t quite sure she remembers what Roundabout shot at, and Akarsha’s raised eyebrows tell a similar story. However, now that Dragula has stopped trying to pummel Akarsha, Noelle finally gets a good look at Roundabout’s body. Its head sports a purple Afro, with a thin but masculine face and a pointed chin, almost like that of a male anime character. Its eyes appear to be green lenses in the shape of those embarrassing(ly endearing) alien glasses Akarsha wears. Its nose and mouth are covered by a pink face mask that seems to have thin, clear tubes protruding from the hinge of the jaw and disappearing behind its shoulders to connect to something on its back. It’s body is thin, lanky and fit, with royal blue skin. Though it would seem underweight to some, its size is slightly hidden by the body armor on its torso, legs, and shoulders, all cyan in color with a purple polka-dot pattern on each protective item. The backs of Roundabout’s hands also appear to have translucent armor on them, similar to the protective fingerless gloves worn by some martial artists but with faint purple stripes running from the wrist to the fingers. Altogether, Noelle couldn’t tell what was functional and what was there to just look strange and god-awful*

Noelle (touching a hand you her forehead): (There was something else... something else I wanted to see tonight... Argh, can’t think of what it could be!)

Akarsha (putting away Roundabout as Dragula fades from reality): So... how did it feel?

Min (yelling in her usual anger): LIKE I WANTED TO KICK YOUR ASS!

Akarsha (holding up a fist passionately): Yeah, but underneath all that, what did it feel like to have your Stand out and about? How did it feel to do a rush, hit me like you wanted to hurt me?

*Min looks down at her open palm, then holds her arm in front of her face*

Min (continuing to stare at her hand): It felt just like any fight I’d been in before. It felt like an extension of my body. But wasn’t some weapon I was manipulating, it was a part of me. And I still felt the reality that it was just me vs you, but... it also kinda felt like I had a buddy in my corner too. *Min looks away from her hand to give a slightly embarrassed smile to Akarsha, who looks back at her, a little surprised* God, that makes no fucking sense. *she brings her palm to her forehead in a facepalm, closing her eyes and smiling in spite of herself* What about you, Diya? Did your Stand come out at all—?

*Min-seo opens her eyes to look over at Diya and subsequently widens them in mild surprise. The bottom half of Diya’s face seems to have disappeared; anything below Diya’s eyes is hidden by pure black. Black like stagehand clothes, like a starless midnight, like... nothing. Coupled with the shadow of Diya’s hood, she looks strange indeed. And when she speaks, her voice doesn’t sound muffled in any way*

Diya: It was like... (I had control over something. I’m not sure what, but I felt like I had found something secure. But i don’t know what I had?! I... I...) I’m not sure.

*Diya’s eyes look away in embarrassment, and as she does, the void seems to retract away from her mouth and vanish from her face, appearing to retreat to her back. Akarsha walks over to Diya and places a hand on her shoulder*

Akarsha (giving Diya an understanding expression): I hear you, it’s hard to quantify. But still, you know what it feels like. Go ahead and concentrate on that. *she looks over to Min* Try to call on that feeling like you’re calling on your buddy to come over and kick some ass together. And... *she looks back to Diya* whatever you felt, ask it to come back. 

*Akarsha walks over to the tree Noelle is sitting under and proceeds to sit on Noelle’s lap. Some eyes are rolled, but no protests are made

Min-seo remembers that feeling of fighting with their bare hands alone, but with the help of a friend. She wishes she could fight with that friend again. Soon, a familiar sensation rushes through her body, and Dragula appears in front of her, facing ahead. It looks to its left and right before turning to Min, looking down towards her, and speaks in perfect formal Korean*

Dragula: [Where is our opponent?]

*It seems to speak in Min’s voice, except with a bit more Reverb. Min is dumbstruck for a couple seconds before she begins to try and recall her out-of-practice Korean skills*

Min: [Nobody right now. Just wanted to see you I guess.] *Min smirks up at Dragula* [You sound kinda like me. Dang... you look really fucking sick.]

*Dragula is unamused. It stares blankly at its user. Min’s smile fades, consumed by awkwardness. Without another word, Dragula disappears and re-merges with its user*

Min (giving the space where Dragula was the finger): Man, fuck you! 

Akarsha (to Noelle): Did you see Diya’s Stand at all?

Noelle (concentrating hard on her flying fingers): Alla Turca... picked something up... But it’s very faint... I’m working on it... I’ll give an update tomorrow.

Akarsha (smirking): A Shy Stand... cute! *she turns back to Diya and Min* Go ahead and practice using your Stands! 

Min (gesturing in annoyance): Wait, what? No tips or direction? The hell am I supposed to do then?

Noelle: Stands are something you should explore on your own. We don’t want to restrict your self-exploration at all, but I strongly urge you to use caution when using your more combative abilities. Oh, and we want you home no later than 9:00 pm. 

Min (pointing accusingly at Noelle): You’re not my fucking mom, you don’t—

Noelle (glaring at Min-seo): When things run late, parents worry and there are risks brought on by being out after dark. We will run things this way for the sake of safety and of our being allowed to continue this training. Understood?

*Min scoffs and glares at the ground*

Min (shoving her hands in her pockets): ...Yeah, alright.

Diya: It’s only 8:17. This seems like an awful lot of time to just mess around with something we barely understand. (I could only summon mine when I got shot in the knee... I’m not sure how productive I could be if I stay here thinking for a half hour or whatever.)

*Akarsha rests her chin in her hand for a second in thought* 

Akarsha: Well, summoning your stands should be as easy as breathing, so... I guess just work on trying to make it a habit. If you’re bored in class or whatever, go ahead and practice summoning your Stand. Preferably nonverbally. I mean, practice verbal summons too, but alone so people don’t think you’re insane.

Min (Looking between the rest of D.A.M.N): (So... general practice to get comfortable with our new buddies... sounds easy enough.) *she gazes at the darkening surroundings of the park before turning to Noelle* Yo, Akarsha! I’m going for a walk. If anybody tried to bother you, use your Stand to beat their ass! 

Noelle (annoyed): It has a name—!

Akarsha (grinning and striking an absurd pose): Hell yeah I will! *Roundabout appears next to her in the same pose, made even more ludicrous by the Stand’s features*

*Min gives a thumbs up to Akarsha before turning to Diya*

Min: Do you want to walk with me? My Stand is a bit of a brat but I think they’ll protect us just fine if things get ugly. Not that they will, but—

Noelle (standing up, exasperated): THEY HAVE NAMES, USE THEM!!!

Min: Yeah, well what-its-name just told me to fuck off until shit gets real, why don’t you ALSO fuck off?!

*Diya shoots Min a slightly pleading look as the tiny package of anger flips Noelle the bird. She takes a couple of steps to lead Min away from the confrontation, and Min soon turns to join Diya on their stroll. 

As they walk, Min shivers slightly in the chilly evening air, and Diya reaches to bring her arm around her shoulders. Min can’t help but be pulled in and leans their against their girlfriend’s chest with a soft smile*

Min: You’re like a giant space heater...

Diya (smiling): It helps that there’s not much of you to warm.

Min: Hey, I’ve got a whole-ass Stand now! That like doubles my mass!

Diya: I think they’re like ghosts. They don’t weigh anything, so you’re still smol. 

Min: Man... if I don’t catch up to you, I at least want to stand taller than Noelle. 

*Diya simply chuckles and leans down to kiss the top of Min’s head. The two make it about halfway around the park this way before Min decides to try again with Dragula*

Min: Hey, uh, Stand! Come out! Activate! Fuckin, uh... I choose you!

Diya (supplying helpfully): Dragula.

Min (perking up in realization): Dragula! Where the fuck are ya, I wanna—

Dragula (suddenly appearing in front of Min): [What do you require?]

Min (giving a start): —Jesus!

*They halt in their tracks, startled, and Diya reflexively hugs Min closer too her. Min gathers herself, stands up as tall as she can while Diya’s holds her, and gives Dragula her best intimidating scowl.*

Min: [First off, let's establish a couple of things. If you can, try to speak English when I’m around other people?]

Dragula (in English now): Of course. As an extension of yourself, I speak english as well as you can.

Min (replacing the scowl with a more neutral expression): Ok then… Alright, can you--*Min notices Diya’s nervous face*--you good?

*Diya nods. Dragula may have technically been a part of Min since the beginning, but its appearance would still take some getting used to*

Min: We can start walking again if you want.

*Diya nods, setting off again at a more brisk pace then before. Dragula automatically follows, floating along behind them*

Min (shouting backwards at her Stand): Can you, like, go on standby mode until somebody tries to kick our asses?

Dragula: Of course.

*Dragula dissipates, leaving the two girls as alone as they can be when beings made of their fighting spirit live within them*

Diya (staring thoughtfully at her shoes as they walk): (Min doesn’t seem to be as in-sync as Noelle or Akarsha are with their Stands, but… Dracula or whatever its name was came when called. I wonder…) *she closes her eyes and whispers* Freefall… Can you come out, please?

*Diya feels the same sense of a friendly presence as before and opens her eyes to glance around. To her right, she sees a small humanoid, the size of a small child. Though just the same as Roundabout or Dragula, it could never pass as human. Its skin was an Egyptian blue, its hair of a more royal shade with strands of gold mixed in, tied in a bun behind its head. Golden lines ran from its chin to its cheekbones before turning and stopping behind its ears. It looked sideways at Diya with golden irises like hers, except for the diamond-shaped pupils. For clothing, a sari dyed the deepest blue Diya had ever seen adorned its body, with what looked like a shirt of a slightly lighter shade underneath. Patterning the Indian garment were the golden outlines of roses, glinting in the glow of the streetlights. The sari seemed to flow tranquilly as they moved as if the Stand was underwater. Its whole appearance calmed Diya, somehow. She couldn’t really explain it...*

Diya: (It feels like the same good feeling I get when petting a dog, but... also not because this... isn’t a dog...??)

*Freefall’s breaks eye contact with Diya, not quite looking at her anymore. Diya turns to follow Freefall’s gaze only to be met with Min staring at the small, blue Stand in wonder*

Min: ...Is that yours?

*Diya and Freefall nod at the same time, a small, friendly smile appearing on the latter’s face. Min suddenly scowls and looks down at their own chest, closing her eyes for a couple of seconds before Dragula appears, seeming to come out of Min’s back as if it contained a doorway. It floats above the two girls, where it is quickly joined by Freefall. They stare at each other, Freefall with the same friendly smile and Dragula with the same serious expression. Soon, Freefall speaks. It sounds like Diya, but more confident, bright, and charismatic*

Freefall: You must be Dragula. That’s a cool name! My name is Freefall.

*their voice is soft but confident, friendly yet firm, and soothing to both Diya and Min the second they hear it. They extend their small left hand, palm upward as if inviting Dragula to take hold of it. Dragula’s eyebrows raise slightly, taken by surprise at Freefall’s cordiality. They look down at their own right hand before laying it palm-up on top of Freefall’s. Freefall then turns their hand over, placing it palm-down in Dragula’s, who again mimics the action. Freefall’s next motion brings the Stands’ palms together, interlocking their fingers. Dragula simply stares blankly at the point of contact as Freefall lowers their hands and turns forward in a more natural position. Dragula looks back up at Freefall’s kind face as they float along, hand in incorporeal hand*

Min (looking above at her and Diya’s Stands): I think I can vibe with this whole Stand thing...

  
And so...*  
*Akarsha remains in Noelle’s lap, staring front of her at Roundabout, admiring it as it poses like a swimsuit model on the ground. Noelle looks up from the work she was doing on Alla Turca before rolling her eyes at her companion.

Noelle: Must you parade your Stand around like that? What if another Stand user sees you and tries to fight?

Akarsha (smugly): I thought manga was silly and was so unrealistic that it made you physically sick?

Noelle (blushing furiously at her own words being used against her): J-just put Roundabout away, ok?!

*Akarsha gets up and crawls beside Roundabout, taking the same pose next to her Stand*

Akarsha: Why should I when we’re both such lookers?

Noelle (sighing and looking back down at Alla Turca): Whatever, I need to concentrate. I’m getting a plethora of raw data on Freefall that I need to process. So could you kindly—pay attention when I’m talking to you!

*Akarsha has stood up, Roundabout disappearing as they do, staring in wonder at something. Noelle turns to see what rediculous thing has distracted her this time and she too adopts an awed expression. Diya and Min walk towards them in each other’s arms, the others beholding this sapphic Stand strolling sight. Diya’s cheeks redden from the others staring at them. Freefall takes notice and leans down to murmur in Diya’s ear*

Freefall: Don’t worry, they’re probably just focused on me. They haven’t seen your Stand before after all.

Dragula (to Dragula): Are Stands not an extension of the self? In a way, they are staring at her—

Min: Shut the fuck up you dumb—

*in the midst of Min’s scolding, Freefall slips it’s hand out of Dragula’s to untie her sari and drape it around Diya’s shoulders, where it seems to fuse with her hoodie, turning it the deepest of midnight blues. Her footsteps are muffled now, almost muted, and she is much harder to spot in the dark of dusk, despite the nearby streetlights. Even her breathing gives no sound, though Min can still feel the expansion of her chest with each inhale. Freefall slips its hand back into Dragula’s as the two Stand users come to a stop in front of the rest of D.A.M.N. Akarsha turns to Noelle and smiles*

Akarsha (approvingly): The kids are alright. 

Noelle (wearing her trademark expression of frustrated confusion): What?

*Akarsha simply looks at Diya, then Min, then Freefall, then Dragula, before silently summoning Roundabout to rest her eyes upon it for a few seconds. Then she turns to look down at Alla Turca, then up at its user Noelle*

Akarsha: I’m just liking the look of where we Stand.

To Be Continued 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Why yes, I said that Dragula’s voice was like Min’s but with more Reverb, with a capital “R”. As in Reverb, the western localization name of Echoes Act 1-3, Stand of Koichi Hirose from Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure: Part 4: Diamond is Unbreakable. Yes, that IS the Jojo part that the title of this fic is based off of!
> 
> Anyways, go play Butterfly Soup if you haven’t already.

**Author's Note:**

> This fic started as a question on Discord and grow into what we call a horrid mistake. But I designed 4 whole stands for this and I’m proud of them. Hopefully I wrote the characters correctly, this wasn’t my best work by a long shot. Feedback is greatly appreciated.
> 
> I’ll see you around! 
> 
> Go play Butterfly Soup if you haven’t already: https://brianna-lei.itch.io/butterfly-soup


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